Love is Blind
by Marmar918
Summary: What happens when the abused, tough, killing machine that is Cato falls in love? He falls in love with the one girl he knows will never love him back, the girl who never misses. One thing for sure is, Cato never backs down from a challenge.
1. Chapter 1

Clove's POV

I wake up to my hands clutching the other side of my bed, the cold side. Being the daughter of a Victor has it's perks, especially my large bed that's twice my size. I move my hand across my side of the bed where it's warm from me sleeping, and back over to the cold side. My bed is, in a way, just like me.

I have both a warm and a cold side to me. Mostly I just show my cold side, especially at the academy. As a daughter to a Victor I have to show that side, and only that side. I can not be seen as weak, I will not be seen as weak. I must show all the trainers at the academy that I'm here to win the Hunger Games.

But...there's another side of me, the warm side, that knows that the Hunger Games are wrong. It's so inhuman to kill so many kids. Just thinking that one day I'll be the one killing innocent kids almost makes me feel sick. My best friend at the academy, Felicity, was put into the Hunger Games last year. She went in with the worst person possible, her older brother.

I can feel the tears sting my eyes thinking about how it was them in the final two. Her brother eventually took her out with his sword, he wasn't very sane at that point in the games. I still see him around District 2. He always seems so lost, mostly likely drunk. I almost feel bad for him until I remember my best friends face right as the life slowly drained from her eyes.

There are days were I wish there weren't any Hunger Games. But I couldn't say that, ever. I'm suppose to be a tough, brave, killing machine. I'm suppose to be a career, and if anyone ever thought I wasn't acting like one I wouldn't be able to go into the games. That's not acceptable, especially since I'm the daughter of a Victor.

My mother was the Victor of the 37th Hunger Games. My mom won because she was the perfect career. She was amazing with weapons, her favorite was always her knives, which also happens to be my weapon of choice. My mom could also outrun anyone in her arena. Bu most importantly, she knew how to play the games.

That may sound weird but my mom just knew how the games were to be played. Like when the gamemakers were almost bored, it seemed as though my mom knew that and would do something totally unexpected so they wouldn't try to kill her off. When I was around ten my mom showed me her games. As a ten year old they scared me to death, no pun intended.

The worst part was when she was in the final two. My mom and her district partner were the last ones standing. The boy had earlier told Ceaser in his interview that he had always loved my mom. So, while they were standing there together he professed his love for my mom and went on and on about how he could never hurt her, let alone kill her. So my mom did it for him. She threw a knife right into his heart almost killing him instantly. But not before he told her with his last breath "I will love you, always". Then my mom kissed his cheek and the canon went off, signaling she had won the games.

This is why I hate love. I hate it I hate it I hate it! Love makes you so blind that you don't even realize anything around you. And in the Hunger Games the last thing you need is to not know your surroundings. That boy meant nothing to my mom. He was just a part of the games to her. I swear to never ever fall in love, I can't lose focus. After all, I never miss.

Cato's POV

I'm awoken from my dream by a slap across my cheek. My eyes snap open to see my mother standing over. I clutch my stinging cheek, tears forming in my eyes, not that I'd ever give her the satisfaction of letting her see me cry.

"Get out of bed you lazy ass! You're going to be late to the only thing you're useful for," she says throwing my training uniform at my face

"I swear if you die in the arena I'll be so pissed. The only reason I deal with you is so one day we'll live in the Victors Village!" With that she storms out of my room, slamming the door. I quick change out of my pajamas and into my training uniform.

I walk down stairs trying to get out of here as quick as possible. I full on sprint the four miles to the training center. Running tends to clear my mind. I pull open the center doors and head right to the sword section. I grab my favorite sword and immediately clash as many dummies in sight, trying to blow off some anger at my mom.

After destroying all the dummies I sit down and slow my breathing from the run and dummies claying. As the center trainers set up more dummies I look around the center at the other tributes. Most of them are pathetic, I could easily kill at least half of them.

Then my eyes land on Clove. Clove the only person I could see possibly beating me. I see her taking out dummy after dummy. Clove's really the only girl I've kept my eyes on in the center. Sure I've had girlfriends, who wouldn't want to date me? I admit I've fooled around...a lot. But they never kept my interest. The one girl who has though, would never want to date me.

Clove is always so cold to me, to everyone. She only had one friend, but after she died in the games I never saw her with anyone. She never sits by anyone at lunch, never talks to anyone except trainers, and never EVER misses. I feel like I connect with her. I really only have one friend, Ryan. Clove and I would both rather spend hours killing dummies than talk to anyone. The bad thing is...I think I love her.

**I hope you guys like this! I would love to know what you think. PLEASE R and R. I;m sorry that this might have been a little boring, but I'm setting up their backgrounds for later...THERE IS CLATO TO COME :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey guys! I know I'm a poopy writer for not updating in so long, I'M SORRY. I have track and soccer starts soon so I'm really busy. I'll try to update more, I pinky promise! Thank you for the reviews, favorites, and follows. If you haven't already, I hope you guys will check out my other story. Thanks. Now...onto the story! :D**

Cato's POV

Okay so maybe love was a strong word. A person like me, a killing machine, will never love. I can't love Clove and she can't love me. It's just understood that Careers only have one job...to win.

Something about Clove makes me feel different though. When I see her my heart beats faster. Even though I've only spoken to her at the most five times. They range from a casual hello to threats of killing each other in the games when training against one another. How can I feel so strongly for someone who I barely know? All I know is that I've never felt like that for another girl. That doesn't mean I love her, right?

No of course it's not love...

It could be though...

It's not...

God I need to just get her out of my head and train. I stand up and head over to the dummies they set up after clearing the ones I destroyed. This time I decide to work on my spear throwing. The spear throwing is right next to the knife throwing. You see, the academy is organized into three sections.

The weapons section which includes: knives, spears, maces, swords, bow and arrows, tridents, slingshots, blowguns, axes, or any other weapon you can think of.

Then there's the combat section which has: Hand to hand combat against a trainer, hand to hand combat against an opponent (where Clove and I threaten each other while fighting), or they have a large stimulation room where you can pick the tribute's skill, size, district, and arena environment. That's where our trainers usually test us.

The last section is physical training. That's pretty self explanatory. There's weight lifting, treadmills, and all types of machines to test your physical abilities.

I pick up a spear and walk back about fifty yards. I pull my arm back and throw. _Thump_. Bulls-eye. As I walk to the rack to grab another I catch Clove throwing out of the corner of my eye. I turn more to watch, but not too much. I don't want to be too obvious about watching her.

She looks in the zone when she throws, as if she's in her own little world. She looks so beautiful when she's like that. Her straight raven hair's in a high ponytail like always. I wonder what it would it would be like to run my fingers through her hair when it's not in a ponytail. _That didn't sound creepy at all_.

After she hits five bulls-eyes she glances up. She looks right at me. _Shit_. She saw that I was totally checking her out. I quick turn back to the rack and try to hide my blush. _Pull yourself together Cato_.

I grab another spear and go to throw. This time I go sixty yards. As I position myself to throw I see Clove, arms crossed over her chest, staring at me. She knows I see her and gives a smirk. I'm suddenly nervous. God if I miss she'll never forget it. I take a deep breath and throw.

_Thump._ Bulls-eye again. I grin and look over at Clove and she looks impressed. She then turns and grabs seven knives, looks at me, then throws them. They all get perfect bulls-eyes of course. She makes it look so effortless. Then she turns and smirks at me as if saying 'try and beat that'. Well challenge accepted. I grab another spear and go back sixty five yards. If I hit this it'll be the farthest I've ever gone. I pull my arm back, deep breath, throw. _Thump_. Bulls-eye. I turn and give her a smirk as if taunting her back to try and beat me.

This goes on for a while until I'm at eighty yards. Then my spear goes just a little to the right off the bulls-eye. I'm so pissed that I'm about to take my sword and slaughter the target until I see Clove walking over.

"Hey, that was some pretty impressive spear throwing" She says smirking up at me since I'm at least a foot taller than her.

"Ha umm t-t-thanks" I stutter. I sound like an idiot. I try to recover "You're knife throwing was great" I say in a sure tone giving her a lazy smirk.

"Thanks, well maybe you could try to train me in spears and I could try and train you in knives?" She says lightly blushing. I've never seen Clove look so beautiful. She looks at the ground trying to hide it.

Then she quickly looks up at me and say "Well I need to go, bye" and turns and takes a step in the direction of the exit but not before I grab her arm. She involuntarily cringes before I turn her back to me and let go.

"I'd love to train each other. How about we start tomorrow?" I suggest praying she says yes.

"Ok" she says as her face lights up "I'll see you tomorrow" she says as she turns and jogs out of the academy's doors.

I smile to myself as I realize that's the most I've ever talked to Clove. To add onto that she agreed to train with me tomorrow. I do a little happy dance before I spot my trainer giving me a strange look and quickly stop. _Talk about embarrassing. _I don't even care, I'm too excited for tomorrow to let anything ruin it. One question I keep thinking as I finally walk home is...

Does Clove feel anything like what I feel for her?

I might not be able to say I'm in love with her but I'm falling. Falling hard and quick.

**What did you guys think? Please tell me any suggestions or ideas you have! I'd love to hear them! Virtual cookies for anyone who reviews, favorites, or follows :D**


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